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Drakes
The drakes are a race divided High Drakes The trueborn drakes, or high drakes, are a people without direction or leadership. Once looked to as generals and trusted agents, the high drakes no longer have a lord to dedicate their service to. The lords of Moarfyre, Simara, and Rogelhan each have their own reasons for not placing drakes in places of power and influence. The general populace is torn on whether to revere drakes as heroes for ending the War of the Sons, or loathe them for ending the War before a new king could be named. Many people blame the race as a whole for the current state of the world, reasoning that a strong ruler, even a tyrannical one, would be able to protect them and help them prosper. For their own part, the high drakes feel that there are no lords currently alive deserving of their support. Instead, they congregate in their own neighborhoods and communities in the largest cities. The drakes are not ostracized, or outright hated by other races, but they feel that it is safest if they do not tempt fate by spreading themselves too thin. Drakes are also very family-oriented by nature. It is extremely rare to find fewer than several large families of drakes in one place, and it is practically unheard of for one drake to be living alone among another race. This drive to be with other drakes has allowed drake culture to survive, even when surrounded by humans, gypsies, orcs, stone-bearers, and Cursed. Drakes take great pleasure in the ceremonies and rituals surrounding their families, from births, to graduations, to weddings, to funerals. It is nearly impossible to walk into a drake community and not encounter a family (or several families) celebrating some event. Low Drakes Low drakes, on the other hand, were relatively unaffected by the end of the war. Drafted as shock troops by the armies of the Cursed Sons, the low drakes simply went back to their ancestral homes when the armies dissolved. Traditionally settling on the shores of large lakes or within marshy land that was unsuitable for other races, these drakes are less educated and more savage than their “true-born” brethren. Many of the homes that they build are wooden structures above the surface of the water, with extensions below the water much like a beaver’s dam. Low drakes have a strong distaste for “high” drakes, due to a slight in the distant past that the low drakes have never forgotten. The insult is not discussed with outsiders, however. In temperament, outlook, and other behaviors they are similar to high drakes. Believing themselves to be plagued by dark spirits, low drakes follow a complex calendar of rituals and ceremonies to appease their spiritual tormentors. Physical Representation Scale pattern on neck, temples or forehead for “low” drakes; scale pattern on all listed areas and hands/arms OR full reptilian face mask for “noble” drakes Other *Usual coloration for High Drakes are Red and Blue *Usual coloration for Low Drakes are Brown and Earthy tones *Their sacred language is called Old Drake (or Seykalat) and is never spoken in front of any non-Drake Known Drakes (PC/NPC) *Ko'ren AEriart